Serum α-fetoprotein level as a biomarker for early recurrence after R0 resection in primary hepatocellular carcinoma

ObjectivesTo investigate the impact of serum α-fetoprotein (AFP) levels on survival and early recurrence after R0 resection in primary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).MethodsWe retrospectively analyzed clinical data of 582 patients with primary HCC (male: 488, female: 94; mean age: 51 years [age range, 31-73 years]) who underwent R0 resection between January 1997 and December 2009. The 1-, 3-, and 5-year overall survival (OS) rates and the clinico-pathological factors between the AFP-negative and AFP-positive groups were compared. Risk factors of early recurrence in the AFP-positive group were further analyzed.ResultsAge and histological differentiation were significantly lower in the AFP-positive group than in AFP-negative group (χ2=1 1.004, 32.293; P=0.000). In the AFP-positive group, serum γ-glutamyl transferase levels, tumor diameters, TNM stage, and early recurrence rate were higher (χ2=9.814 to 14.009, P